Mallya questions duty to fly unprofitable routes

Reuters: Vijay Mallya, whose cash-strapped Kingfisher Airlines cancelled scores of flights this week, drawing the ire of the government and travellers and spooking investors, questioned on Saturday whether it was the carrier’s duty to fly loss-making routes.

Shares in Kingfisher, the country’s second-largest airline by market share, fell as much as 18 percent to an all-time low on Friday as investors fretted about the viability of the carrier, which acknowledged it had been late in paying salaries in recent months.

On Saturday, the Mint newspaper, citing an unidentified source, reported that the government had decided in principle to allow foreign airlines to own up to 24 per cent of Indian carriers, a move that could throw a lifeline to Kingfisher and its struggling rivals.

It said the matter would be put before the cabinet of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in the next four weeks.